# Why Latinas Need to Stop Climbing the Corporate Ladder and Build Their Own with Stephanie Pimentel

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/yo-quiero-dinero-245869/why-latinas-need-to-stop-climbing-the-corporate-ladder-and-build-their-own-with-stephanie-pimentel
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/yo-quiero-dinero-245869/why-latinas-need-to-stop-climbing-the-corporate-ladder-and-build-their-own-with-stephanie-pimentel.md
Podcast: [Yo Quiero Dinero](https://stenobird.com/podcast/yo-quiero-dinero-245869)
Published: 2026-03-23T05:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://shows.acast.com/yoquierodinero/episodes/why-latinas-need-to-stop-climbing-the-corporate-ladder
Audio file: https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/61df3c8f051a2f001272041d/e/69be6d571a160b44dbf08362/media.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/yo-quiero-dinero-245869/episodes/why-latinas-need-to-stop-climbing-the-corporate-ladder-and-build-their-own-with-stephanie-pimentel
Duration seconds: 2366

## Resource

She was literally born the day her mother landed in the US — and that energy of showing up and figuring it out has followed Steph Michelle Pimentel her entire life. In this episode, I'm sitting down with Stephanie Pimentel, a Dominican American executive and the founder of Lumena Global, whose work sits at the intersection of cross-border leadership, people strategy, and cultural intelligence. She spent 17 years in corporate — starting as an HR coordinator at $11.75 an hour and climbing all the way to the executive level — only to discover that being invited into the room is not the same thing as having real power in it. We are talking about the "fake seat at the table," what it actually means to be an asset that companies exploit without compensating, why US businesses keep fumbling Latino and Latam markets, and why with AI handing you every tool you need, there has never been a better time to say f*ck corporate and build your own table. Stephanie is also giving YQD listeners a free 15-minute strategy call — no charge, no catch. You need to take her up on it. WE GET INTO: 0:00 - Intro: Born the Day Her Mother Landed in the US 1:06 - Growing Up Dominican & the "Work, Work, Work" Mentality 2:31 - 17 Years in Corporate Starting at $11.75/Hour 4:19 - The Fake Seat at the Table Explained 9:00 - Battling Imposter Syndrome When You're Losing Your Job 10:41 - Why AI Makes Right Now the Best Time to Ditch Corporate 11:44 - The $4.1 Trillion Latino Market (We Are Not a Niche) 15:02 - How US Companies Fumble Latin American Expansion 24:31 - Stephanie's Entrepreneurial Journey: Failures, LLCs & Rock Bottom 34:57 - Free Strategy Call + How to Work With Stephanie KEY TAKEAWAYS: Being invited into the room is not the same as having real power in it Cultural intelligence isn'…

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